Photo ID laws needed for voting integrity

Recently some liberal columnists have complained that the passage of legislation requiring citizens to show a valid photo ID before they are allowed to vote is as unfair as the poll taxes were in the post-Civil War South because poor people can't afford them.

However, the laws passed in the 11 states that have recently passed photo ID laws (Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, New Hampshire, South Dakota and Tennessee) all provide non-driver's IDs at no charge at drivers license stations and also allow voters who have no photo ID to vote on a "provisional" ballot.

Proper identification of voters in elections is essential because there are millions of dead citizens still registered to vote and millions of citizens registered to vote in two or more states at present. Attempts to remove dead people's names from voter registration lists are slow and sometimes remove voters who still are living.

Only by requiring would-be voters to prove who they are, that they are American citizens, their age and where they live before they vote can we be assured that every vote is valid and that the election properly reflects the wishes of the majority.

J. Fred Doornbos

Iowa City

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Photo ID laws needed for voting integrity

Recently some liberal columnists have complained that the passage of legislation requiring citizens to show a valid photo ID before they are allowed to vote is as unfair as the poll taxes were in the